Big 3 News - USA - What Is The Plan, Mr. Ford?
Ford Motor's new product program is in disarray
USA - Forbes, by Jerry Flint -15 Nov 2005: -- In six years, the company has had four U.S. product executives. Changing a top manager four times in six years sends a message of deep discontent right from the top. Whether the executive turnover is the cause or effect--or maybe a little bit of both--dead and bungled product programs are scattered around the Ford landscape. Casualties include the Ford Thunderbird and Taurus, the Mercury Sable, and the Lincoln Blackwood and LS. Rumor has it that the Ford Freestyle is also on the endangered list. It is no wonder that its archrival, the Chevrolet division at General Motors, could outsell the Ford division this year--another reversal of fortune... If Ford doesn't stop its decline--and we've yet to see any indication that it has stopped--then in 2007, when all those new Toyotas arrive, Toyota could overtake Ford as the No. 2 automaker in the U.S. Ford also needs to take a critical look at product planning and develop a better understanding of how the market is changing--and how to deal with it. Design is another crucial issue. The company says it recognizes that it has fallen down on the design front, and that it is going to try to make its vehicles more exciting. But Ford needs more than just talk... Ford is pushing forward with plans to expand hybrid production. That is a good plan, but what about other fuel saving techniques, such as cylinder shutdowns on Ford engines? That's a grand way to reduce fuel consumption at highway cruising speeds...
posted by Unknown @ 12:53 PM
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